Drug & Alcohol Program Technician

Full Job Description

King County Metro Transit's Safety, Security, and Quality Assurance (SSQA) Division is seeking a detail-driven, compliance minded professional to step into the role of Drug & Alcohol Program Technician.

Reporting to the Drug & Alcohol Program Superintendent, this position performs administrative duties to assist in the administration of the Drug and Alcohol Testing Program to ensure compliance with federal regulations and King County policies. This position performs urine drug screen collections, breath alcohol tests, and oral fluid drug test collections as authorized under federal regulations

Our ideal candidate is a dedicated individual who maintains confidentiality, has high personal integrity, and demonstrates dependability.

They must be able to work with sensitive issues and maintain security and professionalism, while exercising tact and discretion.

King County has approximately 4,600 safety-sensitive employees who are subject to U.S.

Department of Transportation drug and alcohol testing requirements, including regulations from the Federal Transit Administration, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and the U.S. Coast Guard.

In addition, the King County Drug and Alcohol Testing Program provides assistance associated with reasonable suspicion, post-accident, and follow-up drug and alcohol testing for all non-safety sensitive employees subject to King County policy.

This recruitment will be used to fill one (1) term-limited temporary (TLT) / special duty assignment (SDA) Drug & Alcohol Program Technician position with an anticipated duration through March 2027, with the possibility of extension.

In addition, this recruitment selection process may be used to generate an eligibility pool for future Career Service, Term-limited Temporary (TLT), or Special Duty Assignment (SDA) positions that may occur in this classification.

The eligibility pool will be retained for 12 months from the date of posting and may be used at the discretion of the hiring authority.

Requirements

Applying equity and social justice principles is a daily responsibility and a foundational expectation for all King County employees. In this role, you will apply equity and social justice principles that exemplify shared values, behaviors, and practices to all aspects of the work. As a Drug & Alcohol Program Technician, you will:

• Collect urine specimens (or oral fluid, when available) for DOT and Non-DOT drug tests (Training Provided).
• Perform observed (same gender) urine collections as required by federal regulation.
• Monitor donor in shy bladder situations following federal requirements.
• Conduct evidential breath tests for DOT and Non-DOT alcohol tests (Training Provided).
• Respond on a rotating on-call basis, to conduct unscheduled after hours and/or weekend post-accident and/or reasonable suspicion tests at the work site, with a required response time of within one hour of notification.

Perform various administrative duties associated with the day-to-day operation of the program e.g.

records management, process and procedures, drug/alcohol background checks, data validation, written correspondence, audits, and direct administrative support to the Drug & Alcohol Program Superintendent.

• Assist in reviewing, ensuring, or enforcing all federally mandated and King County required drug and alcohol testing requirements to ensure compliance with FTA, FMCSA, and USCG regulations and King County Policies (Training Provided).
• Perform scheduling, data entry, and data validation of all federally mandated and King County required drug and alcohol tests.
• Maintain security and confidentiality of highly sensitive communications, federal drug and alcohol test records, and other records in all forms (written, verbal and electronic).
• Draft procedures for review by Drug and Alcohol Program Superintendent.
• Assist in the review and analysis of facility and employee-safety or drug and alcohol testing issues.
• Respond to inquirers via phone, Teams calls, and email and assist in the day-to-day operation of the drug & alcohol program.
• Collect and compile drug and alcohol testing data for billing verification, as well as statistical information, for preparation of reports and audits.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

We are looking for candidates who have the following minimum qualifications:

• Ability to learn and apply federal drug and alcohol testing regulations, including FTA, FMCSA, and USCG requirements.
• Ability to conduct observed same gender urine specimen collections, oral fluid collections, and evidential breath alcohol tests.
• Experience managing sensitive and confidential records, ensuring accuracy, organization, and regulatory compliance.
• Proficient in data entry, data validation, and maintaining detailed logs for audits, billing, and reporting.
• Ability to organize and maintain physical documents using standard filing practices.
• Excellent attention to detail in documentation, recordkeeping, and administrative tasks.
• Experienced and proficient using Microsoft Suite products including Word, Excel, Teams, and Outlook.
• Comfortable learning new skills, programs, and technical procedures as well as staying up to date on current practices and trends.
• Strong written and oral communication skills that provide easily understandable information and direction, while providing outstanding customer service electronically, via telephone, and in person.
• Effective communication and interpersonal skills for working with individuals in sensitive or high stress situations.
• Ability to work independently, prioritize work with minimal direction, and navigate ambiguous or political sensitive environments.
• Experience maintaining professionalism, confidentiality, and discretion when interacting with a wide range of individuals.
• Flexible and dependable with the capacity to be available on a rotating on-call schedule to respond within one hour to emergency after-hours or weekend post-accident and reasonable suspicion testing requirements at the work site.
• Valid Washington State Driver’s license and the ability to operate a King County fleet motor vehicle or alternative ability to travel between remote worksites that may not be easily accessible by public transportation.

Highly competitive candidates will also have the following desired (but not required) qualifications:

• Experience in medical, clinical, or patient-support roles, including front-desk, administrative, or clinical assistant positions.
• Certified Medical Assistant credential.
• Experience conducting urine collection for drug tests.
• Experience working in a drug or alcohol testing facility OR an office responsible for compliance with a federally mandated drug and alcohol program.

Additional Information

Required Application Materials: Applications submitted without the following required application materials will be deemed incomplete and be removed from consideration:

1. An online King County application updated with accurate contact information and relevant work history with job duties going back at least 10 years (or more, if necessary).
   
2. Completed supplemental questions answered thoroughly and accurately. Note: Responses should reflect and be supported by the information in your application materials.
   
3. A cover letter of no more than one (1) page that conveys your interest in this specific position, explains how your experience aligns with the duties, and demonstrates how you meet or exceed the qualifications.

Additional documents attached, such as resumes, will not be reviewed. Ensure all relevant information is included within the required King County application work experience section, supplemental question responses, and cover letter.

Position Details: This position is non-exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and is overtime eligible. Employees are paid on a bi-weekly schedule, every other Thursday.

Work Schedule Details: Work schedule is normally Monday through Friday, 40-hour work week. Variations may be required depending on the needs of the work. This position will be filled for the 4:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. shift. The program also operates an 11:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. shift, and assignments may change based on staffing needs.

All shifts will require flexible hours for staff to report earlier or later than their normal hours and/or stay later as business need requires.

On-call Requirement: This position requires participation in a weekly on-call rotation, between four or five Technicians, for after-hours emergency testing. Flexibility will also be required for some weekend and/or holiday hours on an as needed basis. When notified of a testing need, the employee must report to the collection site within one hour of being notified.

Work Location Details: The work performed in this position is conducted 100% onsite. The primary onsite location is the Drug & Alcohol Collection Center located at 1263-B Sixth Avenue South, Seattle, WA.

Employees must reside in Washington state and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements.

Necessary Special Requirements:

Mission-Critical: This position is designated “Mission-critical” and requires reporting for duty to perform work or have the skills needed to deliver and maintain the County’s essential functions and service even in emergencies or adverse weather events.

Driver’s Abstract Review: The successful candidate must possess a valid driver's license with acceptable five-year driving record (to be verified via a Driver’s Abstract review prior to employment). Any of the following violations in the last five years will automatically disqualify candidates under consideration:

• Reckless or negligent driving
  
• Driving under the influence or driving while intoxicated Hit and run accident citation
  
• Vehicular homicide or vehicular assault Open container citation
  
• More than one at-fault accident (does not include non at-fault accidents)
• Any 1 suspension for a moving violation
  
• 3 or more moving violations
  
• Any license suspension, revocation, cancellation or disqualification based on a traffic or moving violation License restrictions (such as an ignition interlock device requirement)
  
• Any convictions for reckless or negligent driving, hit and run, leaving the scene of an accident, driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, vehicular assault or homicide
  
• Any alcohol, drug or test refusal related occurrences
  
• Any other driving record incidents or occurrences that provide a reasonable basis to question the applicant's ability to provide safe and public transportation

WA State Driver’s License: Successful candidate must possess a Washington State driver’s license within 30 days of hire and have the ability to travel throughout the county in a timely fashion to places where public transportation may not be readily available.

Background Check Requirement: To be completed prior to employment. Where the criminal conviction relates reasonably to the fitness to perform the job duties, Metro Transit has a responsibility to ensure a safe and reliable public transportation system for its passengers and its employees. The following criminal convictions may establish an impermissible nexus with positions that require interaction with the general public and/or, unsupervised access to other employees or the general public and/or, responsibility for the maintenance and safety of Metro Transit property:

• Crimes of a sexual nature committed against an individual including, but not limited to, rape, child molestation, and unlawful sexual acts.
  
• Any crime of a sexual nature that results in inclusion on the national sex offender registry.
  
• Crimes involving violent or assaultive behavior including, but not limited to, murder, manslaughter, rape, robbery, assault, battery, kidnapping, extortion, carrying or use of a deadly weapon.
  

Crimes involving the physical control, sale, use, transportation of controlled substances, and/or operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Note – the nexus of prior misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor convictions related to marijuana should be evaluated carefully in light of SB 5605, Misdemeanor Vacating for Marijuana.

• Crimes involving dishonesty such as fraud, embezzlement, the mishandling, theft, and/or the misappropriation of funds or property, or possession of stolen property.
  
• Crimes involving serious or repeated discrimination or harassment based on race, creed, color, religion, sex, gender identity, disability, or sexual orientation (municipal law applies in Seattle).

The above do not constitute a comprehensive list of convictions with a potential nexus to Metro Transit classifications, nor do they automatically disqualify an applicant from further employment consideration. For additional information please refer to: RCW 43.43.830.

Classification / Job Code / Grade / Union: Safety & Health Admin I / 234103 / 43 / C4 - PROTEC17 : Professional and Technical Employees, Local 17